The charcoal industry is a fairly new industry in Namibia, being an innovative by-product of clearing invader bush. The industry grew significantly in the 2001-2010 period, and has now become an important economic sector. Its development as a labour-intensive industry has in turn attracted indigent and unskilled labourers who, however, fall outside the usual protection of the labour and health and safety laws because the industry itself remainsunregulated.